Firemen's Clayhole Lake
Carver County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 10022600
DNR records show 10 stocking entries at Firemen's Clayhole Lake since 2016, most recently black crappie adults in 2025 (130 fish).
- Firemen's Clayhole Lake has 10 DNR stocking records across 7 years (2016-2025): black crappie (5), largemouth bass (3), bluegill sunfish (1), pumpkinseed sunfish (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is black crappie: 531 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 23 ft, mean depth 7 ft; surface area 9 acres, 7 littoral acres, 0.7 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 4.3 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, pumpkinseed, shortnose gar, white sucker, yellow bullhead.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Carver County, nearest town Chaska; DNR lake number (DOW) 10022600.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Black Crappie | adults | 130 | 32.5 |
| 2025 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 2 | 3.5 |
| 2024 | Black Crappie | adults | 100 | 33.0 |
| 2023 | Black Crappie | adults | 100 | 14.3 |
| 2023 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 5 | 5.0 |
| 2022 | Black Crappie | adults | 100 | 8.7 |
| 2021 | Black Crappie | adults | 101 | 33.6 |
| 2018 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 20 | 20.0 |
| 2016 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 451 | 121.9 |
| 2016 | Pumpkinseed Sunfish | adults | 18 | 4.9 |
Field note · Minnesota stocks by year, not by truck day: walleye fry go in within weeks of ice-out, fingerlings and yearlings mostly in fall, and stream trout in spring and fall. A row here means the fish went in during that year; DNR adds the year's rows after the fact, so the current year can look empty until winter.
DNR fish survey, 2017
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 164.67 | 988 | 0.10 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 10.50 | 63 | 0.06 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 10.33 | 62 | 0.10 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 8.00 | 48 | 0.10 |
| Golden shiner | Standard trap nets | 2.83 | 17 | 0.14 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 2.33 | 14 | 0.39 |
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.50 | 3 | 0.05 |
| Shortnose gar | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.94 |
Catch per net (CPUE) is the DNR survey's count per gill net or trap net set; higher means more of that species were sampled, not a fishing forecast. Top species per gear shown; where we have no verified common name for a DNR code, the code itself is shown.
Firemen's Pond is a 9-acre lake in the middle of downtown Chaska. In 2016 the City of Chaska completed a project that upgraded the surrounding park which has increased access to a large portion of the shoreline for fishing. A portion of the pond is designated for swimming and sits adjacent to a playground and a picnic area. Firemen's Pond has been part of the Fishing in the Neighborhood (FiN) program since 2007. Since that time, this pond has been stocked annually with Bluegill and occasionally with Largemouth Bass and Black Crappie. For more information about the FiN program or FiN stocking updates, please visit us at: www.mndnr.gov/fishing/fin . Bluegills were the primary species captured with an abundance above average for similar lakes. Though extremely abundant, Bluegill in the lake were small averaging 0.1 pounds per individual. Bluegills ranged in length from 4.0 to 7.2 inches with an average length of 5.4 inches. Black Crappie abundance was above average compared to similar lakes but individuals were small, averaging 0.1 pounds. The average length of Black Crappie was 6 inches and ranged from 5.5 to 6.5 inches. Pumpkinseed abundance was notable as well hybrid sunfish. Hybrid sunfish are a cross between 2 distinct sunfish species. Other species captured in lower abundance included Golden Shiner, Green Sunfish, and White Sucker. Northern Pike, Common Carp, and Largemouth Bass were not captured although they were present in the previous survey (2010). Gillnets were not used in the 2017 survey due to limited space caused by the existing walking bridge across the middle of the lake. Electrofishing is the typical means used to sample Largemouth Bass, but that method was not used for this survey
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
All Minnesota stockings · every Minnesota lake with a page · state CSV · this lake on DNR LakeFinder
Stocking rows, depths, accesses and survey figures are Minnesota DNR LakeFinder data as of 2026-09-02. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
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